There is a finch nest
In the base of a big aloe
In a large turquoise pot
On our gray wood deck
Perfectly hidden in the
The tangle of roots
Among some fallen aloe leaves
Four or five baby finches
Cry and tweet unseen
The parents hop and fly
Into the garden and hedges
On the fence two mockingbirds
Chase a crow like a couple of Spitfires
Going after the big black Nazi Raider
That wants to eat their chicks
The finches always come back
With a worm or bug every few minutes
All day long the parade
Of parents feeding the nest
With the vast wealth of life
Unseen in the backyard
Bounty that seems to thrive
In the face of extinction
And the collapse of insects
The finches trust the eons of life lessons
Have boundless faith and certainty
That they will find food for the chicks
While we worry about survival
In the latest pandemic to afflict humanity
The chicks tweet and the parents
Raise them to be perfect finches
Just like the previous millions of years
Of finches flying into bushes
Looking for bugs and grubs
The sun sets and rises
Again and again and again
Who will see the next sunrise?
Us or the finches I ask
As the mother appears again
With a little green inch worm